


Our Private War

by ebenflo



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Adult Peter Parker, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Avengers Family, Future Fic, Hand-wavey Magic, Hurt Peter Parker, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mpreg, No underage, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Post-Endgame, Protective Tony Stark, Soulmates, Starker
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-21
Updated: 2019-02-21
Packaged: 2019-10-24 19:15:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17709998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ebenflo/pseuds/ebenflo
Summary: "What Did It Cost? Everything."The war is won, but at what cost? After spending one magical night with Tony Stark, Peter Parker learns the answer to that question might be "everything". As part of the bargain for their souls, an unbreakable bond was forged that obligates Stark to destroy anything - or anyone - that would pose a threat to his soul-mate....so why is Peter on the run from the love of his life?CHAPTER 5 IS UP: FIRST KISS





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This fic will contain mpreg and a whole lot of angst so if that's not your thing please exit now.  
> No underage content: Peter is 18+
> 
> Soundtrack: "Fire On Fire" - Sam Smith  
> https://open.spotify.com/track/5rFj8OzffT0iggSjcBaeND  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vk_xq1P7vIU

"I'm _what?"_

 _"_ Pregnant, Peter. You're pregnant."

Peter stared at Bruce and the small sheaf of papers hewas holding with the test results. He could feel Natasha's eyes boring holes in the back of his head, and it was her who spoke next, voicing what he couldn't bring himself to.

"How sure are you Bruce?"

"Ninety-eight percent, give or take a few standard deviations."

Bruce looked as uncomfortable as Peter felt. Peter felt the bile rising at the back of his throat, his mouth cotton dry.

"Th-there must be some mistake. I just came for a check-up because I've been feeling fluey. And nauseous, I mean I can't even hold down water. And Mister Stark said I shouldn't go to a normal doctor because of my metabolism." Peter could tell he was babbling. Natasha patted his shoulder awkwardly. "I mean...you're not even a medical doctor. Are you?"

"You've got baby brain so I'll try not to be offended by that," Bruce said flatly, looking unimpressed with Peter's comment. "Technically, no. But these results don't lie. Congratulations Mister Parker, you're three months pregnant."

"Three months? But I- I mean we- we didn't...it can't be three months! We only-"

And with that Peter felt his horizon tilt at a jarring angle, before everything went black.


	2. Day 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pregnant, exhausted and terrified, Peter hits the road, accompanied by Clint and Natasha.

**DAY 12**

"Wake up, Peter."

Peter blinked blearily up at Natasha. Her face was clean, her hair plaited. She had probably already been up for an hour or two, patrolling. Barton, the other of his companions, was no where to be seen. Morning sun filtered in through the dirty blinds, shimmering and bouncing off the dust motes.

Any fleeting respite sleep provided was quick to dissipate every morning they were on the road. Far from home; far from Tony. The corners of Peter's mouth pulled down slightly into a frown. There was something primal in the way he longed for the father of his child. Even if Tony was the reason why they were in this situation, holed up in a no-name motel.

"What time is it?"

"Six. We can't stay here, we need to keep moving." Peter caught the downward glance from Natasha towards his abdomen. He reflexively pulled at his sweater, pulling it lower over the subtle bump that had seemingly popped up overnight.

"You're showing,  _Petya._ " Natasha said softly. She reached out as if to touch him but hesitated, her hand hovering nervously halfway between them. 

"It's okay," Peter said, taking her hand and guiding it to the soft swell of his abdomen. It felt nice to be touched, even just the motherly weight of Natasha's palm on his belly. A fissure of sadness crept into him, and he thought of Aunt May. Was she worried? Scared? Did she even believe that he would return?

"When can we stop running?" Peter asked, his voice cracking. Natasha let out a soft sigh.

"When it's safe for you. And the  _detka._ "

Peter must not have looked very convinced because Natasha took his hand and gripped it, hard.

"Peter, I swear. We will look after you. You will be safe. Nothing will harm you or your child, even if that means-"

Natasha didn't finish her sentence, and honestly?

Peter didn't want to know what "that means". 

*

Clint returned a few minutes later to find Peter packing his meagre belongings as Natasha checked the coordinates for their next destination. Another five hour drive, a nameless town. Clint handed him an apple and a bottle of water. Peter realised he must have gone out early to find fresh provisions for them.

"Time to get moving," Clint said, echoing Natasha's earlier words. His voice was gruff but his eyes were kind. He's a father too, Peter thought, recalling the photos he had seen of Clint's wife and children. The thought somewhat warmed him and he moved a little faster, following Clint and Natasha out to the car, a nondescript grey SUV with blacked-out windows.

They had opted for low-tech travel. Nothing traceable, no use of powers - which meant definitely no use of his webs. At any rate, Banner had warned him against strenuous activity before they fully understood the effect of the pregnancy on his body.

As the car pulled away from the motel back on to the freeway, Peter realised for the first time that he could hear another sound. Soft, fluttery...almost non-existent. But alive, so very alive. Even amidst the squeal of the tires and the chatter between Clint and Natasha, there was no mistaking the tiny presence of another human. 

Peter let himself have this one moment of joy, closing his eyes and smiling as his hand came to rest on his abdomen, where Natasha had held him before.

 _Hello, baby,_ he thought to himself. _There you are._


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Fire on fire, we're normally killers,  
> With this much desire, together we're winners.  
> They say that we're out of control and some say we're sinners,  
> But don't let them ruin our beautiful rhythms."
> 
> \- Sam Smith, "Fire On Fire"

_Freshly-minted eighteen, a city of stars and a bottle of contraband wine at his side (pilfered of course from the party he was meant to be at, thrown in their honour - and specifically his honour)._

_Peter looked down at the glittering lights of the city below him and felt a giddy thrill, jubilated. It felt like the night stretched out before him, long and perfect and full of potential._

_"Penny for your thoughts, Spiderling?"_

_Peter spun around to meet the gaze of his mentor, a soft, amused smile on Tony's face. He didn't have any warning Tony was coming - there hadn't been the familiar whir or metallic clunk of the Iron Man suit._ _No, instead Tony had seemingly found him the plain, old way. The fire escape door to the roof was open._

_Tony was standing in front of him still in the outfit he had worn to the gala that evening; smart black dress slacks, crisp white shirt. The only difference now was his shirt sleeves were unbuttoned and rolled up to his elbows, the dinner jacket slung casually over his shoulder (Peter had no doubt the whole outfit was probably worth more than his annual college tuition)._

_Peter felt himself go hot and bothered in the most deliciously wrong places. He bit the inside of his cheek, trying not to think of all the dreams of his that had started out exactly like this very scenario - dreams that had usually ended up with him waking sticky and uncomfortable._

_"H-hi there Mister Stark!"_

_Peter cringed at how high-pitched and squeaky his voice had come out. So much for newly-minted adult._

_"When I last checked, the drinking age for this state was still twenty-one, Mister Parker," Tony raised an eyebrow at him, plucking the bottle up and inspecting it with a discerning eye. "Or do rules not apply to superheroes?"_

_The smirk Tony shot him was playful, daring. Peter swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing. The gesture wasn't missed up Tony, whose lips quirked up further, just a touch. Trying desperately to ignore the heat pooling in his groin, Peter snorted, dropping down to sit on the edge of the roof._

_"Oh yeah, you're one to talk. Tony Stark ALWAYS plays by the rules, doesn't he?"_

_Tony let out a barking laugh and slowly sank down to join Peter. Peter glanced over at the way Tony carefully sat down on the edge, dangling his legs over the side of the building._

_"Scared you'll fall old man?"_

_Their eyes met. There was something foreign - wild and hot - in Tony's eyes that made Peter swoon._

_"No, Peter. I think you and I both know you would catch me."_

 

 


	4. Day 3

**DAY 3**

Tony was still away. Peter was resting in his quarters, exhausted from another day of testing and probing. The common area was filled with their colleagues, taking inventory from the day, filling out paperwork for their reports. Wanda was quietly reading to Vision, Thor cleaning and checking his weapons, when Bruce and Strange came back from the lab with identical looks of grave concern on their faces.

“Doc and I have gone through the results again. We've been talking, and uh…” Bruce started, moving his hands a little helplessly in front of him. “We have a bit of a situation on our hands.”

“Wait, what, what situation?” Wanda asked, closing her book and sitting up straighter.

“Peter can’t stay here,” Strange said bluntly.

“Why? How so?” Thor asked, his hands stilling where they previously been sharpening Stormbreaker.

“Well it’s like—there’s this-“ Bruce floundered for the words. He seemed to have difficulty spitting it out and looked over at his companion for help. “Strange?”

“The baby is going to kill Peter,” Strange interjected, putting the entire room into standstill. There was a heavy thud as someone dropped something. The timing would have been comedic if the news they had just been given wasn't so dire.

“ _What_?”

It was a good thing Peter was sleeping a fair distance from them because the room suddenly exploded into a mess of loud, angry voices.

“The baby. It’s not compatible with his physiology," Strange continued, apparently the only one who could keep his composure given the circumstances. "This...child was never meant to happen. Right now it’s making a nest for itself in there but it’s only a matter of time. If Peter carries that child to term he _will_ die in the process.”

“Surely there’s something you can do?” Natasha demanded. “You’re telling me we have a group of people with extraordinary skills - at least one of them with medical qualifications - and we can’t extract a _baby?_ ”

Bruce looked uncomfortable at her choice of words.

“Nat…you and I both know this isn’t your standard SAR. The baby isn't just another "asset" we can’t just…”extract” him. Or her. Peter isn’t an ordinary boy - hell, who knows what the thing inside him is doing even as we speak. You’ve seen him. He’s tired, he’s pale. You've seen the results, even its growth is accelerated. Peter says he and Tony were only together the once, two weeks ago after Peter's birthday. But somehow he's three months along. Every moment it’s in there it’s probably doing an extraordinary amount of damage.”

“Oh and you calling it a _thing_ makes it all better I suppose?”

“Come on Nat, you know that’s not what I meant.”

“Sure, because you’re the-“

“Stop, everyone, please!” Vision’s voice rang out above the din. He rarely raised his voice around them and it made everyone turn and stare. “We are not going to help Peter, or the baby - or Tony for that matter - by arguing.”

"That's not all," Strange continued, looking uncharacteristically tired. They stared at him, waiting for the other shoe to drop. How could this possibly get any worse? Strange ran a hand over his face, rubbing at his furrowed brow.

"When Tony brought back Peter...brought us all back, daft bastard, he made a deal. At the time it seemed like it was the only way to secure the reversal, and until now it hasn't been an issue. Parker's always been important to Stark - to all of us. But I think we underestimated just  _how_ much he meant - means - to Tony."

"What was the deal?" Nat whispered, feeling a heavy foreboding settle over them.

"They demanded a simple promise from him. In exchange for all of this, Tony agreed that he would stand by his soul mate to the very end, stopping anything which might threaten that person's life...with whatever means and whatever force was necessary. The Fates, it seems, have a strange sense of humour. You want to bring the universe back just to save a single soul? Then you better make it worth it."

They all took a moment to absorb the meaning of Strange's words. A vein in Cap's jaw throbbed as the penny dropped and his eyes were filled with a fierce light.

"No. No, you can't be serious."

"He'll kill the baby," Wanda gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. She whirled around and met Natasha's horrified gaze. "You said he would use whatever force was needed to stop anything that would threaten his mate's life."

"The moment Stark finds out about this child and what it means, it's game over. It will be like putting a loaded gun in his hand and pointing it straight at Peter."

“So what do you suggest?” Wanda continued, standing up to face Banner and Strange. “I mean clearly you’ve been discussing this all evening. What's your plan?”

“We don’t have one,” Bruce admitted sheepishly. “At the moment the best we’ve got is to get him out of here, out of the city - out of the country, if we have to. Lay low until we can think of a plan.”

“Tony’s coming back this weekend. He can’t find out about this.” Steve interjected softly. Natasha gave Steve a sharp look.

“You want to keep the existence of his child a secret from him? You know he’ll go ballistic when he finds out- yes _when_ Steve, not if.”

“If we let him anywhere near Peter there won’t be a child,” Steve retorted. “You heard Strange, Natasha. Stark won’t let anything stop him from saving his mate.”

“So that it’s then, those are our options?" Thor said flatly. "Keep Peter here, and let him fall into Tony's hands. Or take him somewhere else so we can wait it out until this-this _thing_ kills him?”

“Surely Tony won’t harm his own kin?” Vision placated, placing an arm around Wanda. Her hands flew up to hold him in place, like an anchor.

“You heard Doc," Bruce answered. "This thing, this bond - it’s stronger than any of us, or in fact all of us put together.”

“So why hasn’t it kicked in before? Peter’s been in trouble plenty of times.”

“Sure he has, trouble follows that Kid around like a bad smell. But all those times he was able to defend himself. We all know how selfless Peter is - he’s not going to give up the baby to save himself. He’d put his child's life before his own."

They all went quiet for a moment, letting the gravity of the situation sink in, each individually thinking of the coming weeks and months. It would test them as a unit. And as a family.

“Do we tell him?” Natasha asked quietly, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “What makes you think Peter is going to go along with this plan of yours?”

“Peter can’t know,” Bruce said firmly. Natasha threw up her hands in frustration.

"Oh great, so that's it. We lie to Tony, lie to Peter  _and_ we smuggle Peter out of the country without telling him he's carrying a ticking time-bomb?"

Strange levelled her with a look.

“That’s exactly what we’re going to do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the backwards and forwards, hopefully it's not too confusing to follow :-) If you like what you have read and you'd like to see more, please drop a kudos and/or a comment! Your feedback means the world to me!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Maybe it's 'cause I got a little bit older,  
> Maybe it's all that I've been through.  
> I'd like to think it's how you lean on my shoulder,  
> And how I see myself with you."
> 
> \- Sam Smith, "Fire On Fire"

_“It’s a beautiful night,” Peter said softly, swinging his long legs where they dangled freely over the edge. It really was beautiful. There was a light breeze that whispered across the tops of the buildings. Car honks jangled softly in the distance, and there was a burst of music from somewhere far below them._

_“You’re not very good at this part, are you?” Tony teased, raising the bottle of wine to his lips. He had been serious about Peter not drinking, much to Peter’s disappointment._

_“At what?” Peter asked, a little breathless. His eyes traced the seal Tony’s lips made around the neck of the bottle, the way those same lips came away slightly slick and shiny._

_“Small talk,” Tony chuckled. “’Normally you talk a mile a minute, can barely keep up with you. What’s gotten into you, Pete?”_

_Peter blushed hotly._

_“Nothing! I-I just needed a bit of space. It was crowded,” Peter finished lamely._

_“Huh, that so. Well, don’t let me cramp your style. Maybe I should leave you to it?” Tony started to get up, but was stopped by Peter’s lightning fast reflexes._

_“No!” Peter exclaimed quickly. A little too quickly. He could barely shield the desperation in his eyes. He was so mortified by his little outburst that he missed the flash of desire in Tony’s expression. “I mean, I like your company. Up here, with me.”_

_Tony looked down at where they were joined, at Peter’s long, pale fingers wrapped around the tanned, lightly furry skin of his forearm._

_“Then why did you leave the party, Peter?”_

_Peter swallowed hard and dropped Tony’s arm, shifting his gaze again to the rooftops._

_“I just…I told you I needed space.”_

_“Stop lying to me,” Tony purred softly. He reached out and placed his hand over Peter’s, his fingers running an electric line along the top of Peter’s knuckles. Peter swore he could have died right there and that would have been all right. “Stop lying to yourself.”_

_“I saw you. With her,” Peter finally blurted out. “With Pepper. And I thought things had ended between you, and of course that was really sad and I felt bad for you…but I thought it was over now. And then you were talking to her, and laughing and you looked so happy and I…I could never…” Peter’s voice trailed off and he felt small and pathetic._

_Tony was silent for a moment and Peter wondered if it was possible to die, like actually die of humiliation. Then:_

_“Peter were you **jealous**?” Tony asked, his voice a dangerous whisper. Peter scrunched his eyes shut and exhaled. Tony was right, there was no point lying._

_“Yes.”_

_“Peter. Oh, my Peter.” Tony’s voice was warm and full of adoration. “It’s true, Pepper will always be my girl. She has been in my life for a very long time, and history like that doesn’t just go away. And yes, I love her. In some way, I guess I always will. But that doesn’t mean there can’t be space in my heart for another. For you.”_

_Peter’s eyes shot open and he met Tony’s gaze. His heartbeat doubled - tripled - as Tony gently cradled his cheek._

_“Tell me I haven't got this part wrong, Spiderling,” Tony asked, his thumb seeking permission where it skidded along the plush mound of Peter’s bottom lip._

_“N-no,” Peter whispered. The very tip of his tongue darted out instinctively to wet his lip, and instead tasted the salt of Tony's heated skin. “Want this, want you.”_

_“Good,” Tony affirmed, then leaned in to meet Peter’s slightly parted lips with his own._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, your feedback is appreciated. Leave some love if you're enjoying the story :)


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